In this cyberpunk era, why are you still playing the traditional villain?

The fiancée tapped her fingers lightly on the table, lost in thought.

It was clear that she had become interested.

……

"I...you're bullying me again!"

After hanging up the call, Gu Yi threw the bracelet forcefully, looking like she was about to cry.

How abominable!

It was one thing to use light and electricity, but this guy actually went and used his hands in the end!

How could there be such a despicable person... Feeling the inexplicable heat surging through her body, Miss Black Rabbit just wanted to pin him to the ground and beat him up.

"If you're going to put on an act, you should understand."

Without a trace of guilt, Xu Shi comforted him, "If all else fails, I'll take the loss and let you touch me back?"

That was exactly the effect he wanted—he knew very well Xie Qingyan's attitude towards him, and his fiancée would never tolerate his contempt for her.

Anger can often disrupt a person's plans.

However, Xie Qingyan is no ordinary person. What's the point of just provoking her? We need to throw out some bait so that she can savor it after she calms down.

At this point, the prerequisite for cooperating with her was met.

As for Gu Yi, she'll just have to make do, since Su Lin isn't here... In fact, it wouldn't work even if she were here.

Although Su Lin was certainly willing to cooperate, Xie Qingyan knew her well and could easily tell that he was putting on an act.

"Nobody wants to touch you, get out."

Miss Black Rabbit didn't care about any of that and glared at him fiercely.

"You gave up the opportunity for compensation yourself."

With a sliver of shame still remaining, Chairman Xu walked away with a wicked grin.

You're a complete jerk! There's no one worse than you!

After he left, Gu Yi grumbled inwardly, but her body went limp involuntarily.

I looked down...tsk, I need to change the sheets.

As she slowly tidied up the mess in the house, she suddenly realized that, despite her words, she didn't seem to be that resistant to his behavior... at all.

That can't be, right? Him?

Miss Black Rabbit blinked, but her mind kept wandering.

If this is how it is when we're just acting, then what if that bastard Xu were to actually do something to me one day...?

Oh~

She quickly shook her head, clearing the dangerous thought from her mind.

I've drawn the character designs for Xu Shi and Gu Yi. Please give them a like!

Also, anyone who spreads rumors that I'm going to update with fifty chapters, I'll beat you up!

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 52 Further Promotion

Having laid the initial foundation for cooperation with "Prism", Xu Shi seems to be keeping busy.

Xie Qingyan is no pushover; expecting her to bow down to him with such meager methods is pure fantasy... This approach can only have a certain effect, but it is not enough for him to control the overall situation.

In fact, he had a very clear understanding of his fiancée's character—she was a cunning woman, and anyone who wanted to cooperate with her had to be fully prepared, otherwise they would easily fall into her trap.

Not to mention Xie Qingyan herself is a powerful director of a conglomerate; no one should underestimate her.

Therefore, in order to completely seize the initiative and pave the way for future development, there is one thing that needs to be put on the agenda.

A further upgrade of superpowers.

To be honest, we should have considered this issue a long time ago. Although it hasn't been long since I became an "Ascendant," this isn't something that can be won over by time. It would definitely be best to improve as quickly as possible.

Xu Shi now clearly feels the shortcomings of "entropy of evil thoughts" - it requires physical contact and the process is too slow.

Under normal circumstances, this isn't really a problem. Just take it slow and work things out... Jiang Chengcheng is the best example, and Gu Yi and Xia Wuyou went through the same process.

But if an emergency occurs, that won't work. There aren't that many people standing there like fools, letting you bump into them.

Moreover, sometimes, even if you encounter it, it might not be useful, for example, Xie Qingyan.

As the main villain, his fiancée is naturally also an "ascended one," and a born A-class "ascended one."

Her ability is the kind that's "useless even if you encounter her"—"ability nullification".

Units touched by it will have their powers temporarily disabled.

This is quite a buggy ability. If it weren't for the fact that it requires physical contact to take effect, like it does with me, the rating probably wouldn't just be A, but S.

A natural S-class "ascendant," he's an incredibly powerful presence wherever he goes.

Looking at myself... I'm so angry and cold. When will I finally have a baby boy... cough cough, I'm getting off topic.

However, if one could have Shen He's level of skill, dealing with this situation would be much easier—after all, from the very beginning of the story, his "unity of purpose" has been a halo-like quality.

Once activated, as long as one is within the domain, even a glance or a smile from him can have an effect unintentionally.

The same applies to a process that is too slow; it takes time for the seeds of evil to take root and sprout, which can lead to unforeseen changes.

There will always be situations where it's impossible to stall for time, and we also have to consider the possibility that the other party might be subject to stronger interference during the corruption process... all of which will greatly weaken the influence of one's superpower.

Therefore, these two problems definitely need to be solved, or at least one of them needs to be solved first.

People often view superpowers as physical mutations caused by "rust fog," and there are usually two paths to choose from in order to "upgrade" further.

One approach is to engage in targeted training. For example, if your superpower is great strength, then building muscle will definitely gradually increase the upper limit of your ability.

Su Lin and Xia Wuyou are good examples. When they awakened their superpowers, they were both at the B level. They improved through a lot of training and grew to the A level they are at now.

Secondly, being in that environment for a long time, which is like Gu Yi's situation.

According to the plot, the little black rabbit's "data supercomputing" rating was only C at the beginning, but she couldn't resist her high-intensity surfing of the Internet and was engaged in related industries.

Over time, even though she herself was unaware that she had awakened a superpower, she has now transformed into a B-level expert.

So, faced with different paths, what choice did Chairman Xu make...?

Third, financial power.

Since the emergence of "Rust Fog," although people dare not say that they have fully understood the mysteries of superpowers, they have long possessed a great deal of related technology.

Examples include the "sundial" produced by "Snake Ring," the blocking agents and inhibitors under "Prism," and "Hengwo," a drug developed by the two conglomerates when Xu Cheng was in his prime, specifically designed to help people enhance their abilities.

After taking the product and then applying certain physical or mental stimulation, it can achieve a "re-upgrade" effect. In a sense, this can be considered a groundbreaking product.

To draw an analogy, "Eternal Self" is like a pill in the world of immortals and heroes that helps one's cultivation level increase, but it won't lead to the classic scenario where one's cultivation level only increases without any increase in abilities after consuming it.

This is mainly because superpowers are inherently singular specializations, and the complications are real and present. No matter what means are used to "upgrade" them, the final result will be largely the same.

It's the cyber age now, so don't always think that drugs are no better than real combat. You still need to take pre-workout supplements and protein powder to work out... In fact, in Xu Shi's opinion, this is the best example of superpowers and technology advancing side by side.

However, given the current level of the two consortia, the effect of "Hengwo" can at most promote the "further upgrading" of those below Grade A.

Beyond that, you can only rely on your own efforts.

This can be considered the biggest watershed for "upgraded individuals" - the "further upgrades" below A-rank generally follow a fixed pattern, but the situation becomes extremely complicated and difficult to advance to S-rank or even higher.

At least, every "Upgraded Person" in Night City who becomes an S-rank through "re-upgrade" has a very different method, and they all need to find a trigger or some mysterious coincidence.

However, as a B-level player, Xu Shi is not yet able to access such high-end areas.

Of course, if we had to point out something, "Hengwo" also has a serious drawback: it's expensive.

A single dose of this medicine can cost at least seven figures, and it's often in high demand but unavailable.

In the original storyline, there was a classic scene where Shen He went to great lengths to find "Hengwo" for Gu Yi and then participated in the auction. His righteous act of murder and robbery also caused "Snake Ring" to be persecuted once again.

But this was not a problem for Xu Shi – he would never lack money, let alone the fact that this thing was a product of his own company.

So, upon arriving at the company the next day, he immediately made the necessary arrangements.

Inside the laboratory, Miss Su Lin was still worried as usual, "Young Master..."

"Ahhh, I don't want to hear it!"

Xu Shi shook his head like a child, "Can't you say something nicer? If something really happens to me, I'll come after you first when I become a ghost."

"Please don't say such things!"

Su Lin was taken aback, then scolded him very seriously.

"Then I'll just pray that I succeed."

Xu Shi raised an eyebrow nonchalantly.

"……Yes."

Su Lin sighed, put on all the instruments for him, and then slowly injected the medicine into the syringe. She stood by his side, carefully observing all the data.

She knew in her heart that the risks of using the drug weren't too great, but she couldn't help it; it was her loyalty.

No matter how things change, my loyalty will never waver.

-

PS: "Upgrader Rating Standards":

Grade D: Abilities that are useless or cause side effects, and theoretically have no possibility of being "upgraded".

Tier C: Possesses the ability to exert a subtle influence and has the potential for further "upgrading".

Grade B: Possesses a certain level of influence.

Grade A: Possesses a strong ability to exert influence.

S-rank: Possesses immense influence.

SS-class: Extremely dangerous.